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owlishly

owlishly

1 9.1
Acting in a wise, watchful way like an owl
  • adverb
  • /ˈaʊlɪʃli/
: con aspecto sabio
  • She looked up at him owlishly over her glasses, her plump face framed in coils of gray.
  • blinked owlishly
  • looked owlishly
  • peering owlishly

Examples

  • Banion looked owlishly into the lens through his collegiate tortoiseshell eyeglasses.

    Fiction book (2000)
  • "Going someplace?" Runs In Light started, grasping his darts, looking owlishly up at the jagged gray rocks above.

    Fiction book (1990)
  • She then lowered her hands and looked at her nephew owlishly.

    Fiction book (1998)
  • He blinked owlishly at Adam.

    Fiction book (1991)
  • Ruth blinked owlishly.

    Fiction book (1994)
  • Anderson perched on a chair, peering owlishly at Roux through his thick-lensed glasses.

    Fiction book (1994)
  • " Brought up short by this gentle rebuke, Peregrine blinked owlishly at Adam from behind his spectacles, then drew a determined breath.

    Fiction book (1991)
  • Sinklar shook his head, running fingers anxiously through his mop of unruly black hair as he blinked owlishly at his image in the mirror.

    Fiction book (1992)
  • She looked up at him owlishly over her glasses, her plump face framed in coils of gray.

  • Billy stared owlishly at the skinny limbs and tried to decide if the other was really there.

Antonyms

29 4.6

In a way that shows no care about danger or the results

16 1.0

In a way that you do something without thinking or paying attention

How Owlish

owlishly
1 9.1
watchfully
1 3.2
wisely
100 2.3
solemnly
  • Formal
56 4.2
quietly
466 1.0

Surface Forms

owlishly positive

Morphology

owlishly = owlish (transparent) = owl + ish + ly

The adverb 'owlishly' is transparently formed from the adjective 'owlish', indicating a manner resembling an owl.

Etymology

Owlishly comes from owl plus the endings -ish ('like') and -ly ('in the manner of'). Owls are often seen as quiet and wise, so to look or act owlishly is to seem 'wise' or 'watchful', which explains the word's modern meaning.